WooCommerce plugin
For products that should not simply go to whoever clicks fastest: a limited run, a hand-made batch, an advent calendar. People sign up, and you invite them in the order you choose.
The free version is currently under review at the WordPress plugin directory and will be available there soon as “tymok Presale Waitlist for WooCommerce”. Drop me a line and I will let you know.
A limited product goes live, and for the first few minutes the winner is decided by internet connection speed. Everyone else sees “sold out”. What remains are disappointed customers, a flood of emails, and no idea how large the demand actually was.
Ordinary waitlist plugins change little about this: they collect email addresses and notify everyone at the same moment when stock returns. The race is not prevented, only postponed.
Four steps, from a blocked product to a completed sale.
Switch the waitlist on. Nobody can order the product any more, not even through the direct URL.
A form replaces the add-to-cart button. Everyone who signs up gets a customer account. A quota limits the list.
Invite people one by one or in batches. Each invitation unlocks the product for exactly one account, for a limited quantity and a limited time.
Whoever does not buy loses the right when the deadline passes. The place is freed and the next person moves up.
The free version is complete in itself. The Pro add-on takes over the work that piles up with larger lists.
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Blocks the product while the waitlist is running | ✓ | ✓ |
| Quota per product, the list closes itself | ✓ | ✓ |
| Show remaining places, the full ratio, or nothing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Single-use invitation links with deadline and quantity | ✓ | ✓ |
| Admin overview, bulk invitations, CSV export | ✓ | ✓ |
| Newsletter sign-up in the form, with double opt-in | — | ✓ |
| Personal coupon after the subscription | — | ✓ |
| Protection against multiple sign-ups | — | ✓ |
| Automatic refill for expired invitations | — | ✓ |
| Brevo integration | — | ✓ |
Annual licence including updates and support. The free version stays free, with or without Pro.
Pro is an add-on and requires the free core plugin. The core will be available for free in the WordPress plugin directory shortly, Pro comes by email after the purchase.
All prices exclude VAT. Businesses with a valid VAT ID are exempt; the number is requested during checkout.
Yes. Pro is an add-on and requires the free plugin. Install the core first, then the add-on.
No. Without a customer account the later purchase cannot be limited to one person. The account is created right in the waitlist form, so there is no extra step for the customer.
Nothing happens. The link belongs to a customer account. Anyone opening it without that account ends up at the login and cannot buy.
The plugin uses the standard WooCommerce hooks, so it works with almost every theme. Waitlist product pages tell the cache not to store them. If a cache plugin ignores that, those URLs have to be excluded there once by hand.
The features keep working. Without a valid licence you only lose updates and support. A running waitlist never stops unexpectedly.
Tell me what you sell and how large the run is. I will tell you honestly whether this plugin is the right tool for it.
ralf@fangmeier.net